Tom Allen will not return at Indiana.
Following their rivalry loss at Purdue, Indiana finished 3-9 overall and 1-8 in Big Ten play. The Hoosiers pulled a 20-14 upset over Wisconsin on Nov. 4, but their two other victories came over Indiana State and Akron (in four overtimes).
Per his buyout, Allen will be owed a buyout of about $20.4 million since he was dismissed before December 1, 2023. That ranks among the three largest buyouts in college football history.
Indiana showed serious signs of leveling-up as a program in 2019-20. After back-to-back 5-7 seasons in 2017-18, IU went 8-5 in 2019 and 6-2 in 2020 -- a stretch that saw the Hoosiers go 11-5 in Big Ten play and finish No. 12 in the AP poll in '20.
However, rather than build on the progress of those two seasons, the program backslid. Indiana is 9-26 since 2021 and 3-23 against Big Ten competition.
Overall, IU is 33-48 (18-42 Big Ten) in seven seasons under Allen.
Allen spent one season as IU's defensive coordinator prior to his ascension to head coach.
The last 14 Indiana head coaches left the school with losing records. The most recent head Hoosier to win more games than he lost was Bo McMillin, who went 63-48-11 from 1934-47.
Zach Osterman first reported the news.
As always, stay tuned to The Scoop for the latest.
Update >> Tom Allen has shared the following statement:
It has been my greatest professional honor to serve as Indiana’s head football coach for the past seven years. Representing this University and this State has meant more to me than you can imagine. Our entire journey here has been based on a simple concept – Love. Each. Other. It’s what we’ve done, it’s what we’ll always do. I continue to believe it’s a recipe to change the world. There have been so many incredible memories made and relationships formed. I’ll always be grateful for the players, coaches and staff who believed in our vision and gave their heart and soul for this program.
College football has changed dramatically over the past several years. Some of those changes have been a shock to the conscience of those who support IU football. The time has come to fully embrace those changes and I pray that IU does just that.
To each and every player who put on the Crimson and Cream over the past 7 seasons, I love you, thank you and God bless.